Taking Your BALM Recovery One Day at A Time

The Just for Today aspect of recovery can be so infuriating…After all, who doesn’t want guarantees for tomorrow?

Yet, it is also empowering, as living in the moment can allow us to let go of expectation, fear, judgment, and resentment.

Do we have tomorrow?

I don’t know.

Will your loved one choose to get into or stay in recovery?

Don’t know.

So what do I know?

I know that if we choose recovery for today, we can, in this moment, be free from fear, anxiety, upset, judgment and resentment.

In other words, we CAN live in love. We CAN ‘Be the peace that we wish to see in the world.’

These words may sound easier said than done…and they are.

BALM® Recovery is a daily journey that we renew each morning and can renew at any moment throughout the day.

The 7th C, ‘You are always at choice,’ is  especially applicable when it comes to how we will live THIS moment in THIS day.

The world around us may be uncertain, but we can create, in our hearts and minds, a perspective of peace and love to carry us through this day with a sense of calm understanding that often brings with it joy in the moments.

I remember when I first heard of the idea of living life in ‘air-tight compartments’. I liked the concept, but wasn’t sure how to apply that wisdom to my life with a using loved one.

Then, my Alanon sponsor introduced me to the slogan “Stay in present time” and gave me tools to help me to so such as prayer, meditation, journaling, listening to recovery speakers, going to meetings, and working the 12 steps of Alanon.

Over the years, as I worked to develop these habits, my inner peace increased and my ability to stay in present time did so as well.

On any day that I open my eyes with a prayer of thanks for awakening and set time aside for inner quiet, I am setting the stage for just that.

Once I became a Life Coach for family members, I found that not everyone is interested in Alanon but most family members do seek greater peace in their lives, so I created an alternative or add on program, The BALM Method of Family Recovery, to help families get that peace and learn how to share it with their loved ones as well.

The BALM Comprehensive program offers all of us opportunities to easily reach for recovery on a 24/7 basis. We can attend a live class, coaching group or journaling workshop; listen to a recording of a Seven Steps class or Daily BALM® interview. We can read a blog on the FRR website or read the handouts on Family Recovery Academy that reinforce  the lessons we are learning in class. We can develop a practice of mindfulness to increase our own peace. We can use our BALM tools to increase our own awareness and learn how to have BALM conversations to improve our relationships with our loved ones. Any of these that we do on any given day remind me to replace our obsessive thinking with present moment awareness and peace.

We only have this day. This is a fact for every human being that the families of struggling loved ones and anyone engaged in their own inner struggles understand all too well.

The question is:

What will we do with that understanding? What will we do with this day?

In this very moment, we have the opportunity to choose our focus and thus the quality of our experience.

And so, the invitation: Be. Be Loving. Be A Loving Mirror.

Enjoy the day my friends!

Love,

Bev

Would working with one of our BALM® coaches and taking the BALM® Comprehensive Family Recovery Program help you to live more in each moment? If so, click here for more information.